Council approves $5.45 million budget for city

Funds 12 percent less than last year in a down economy

By Evan Jensen

The Estacada News, Jul 8, 2009, Updated Oct 30, 2009 (2 Reader comments)

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The Estacada City Council recently approved a $5.45 million budget for the City of Estacada. The 2009-10 operating budget is 12 percent smaller than the previous fiscal year, but Council members expressed confidence in the city’s ability to manage the funds and unanimously approved the budget prior to the June 22 deadline.

Much of the city’s budget is dedicated to maintaining the status quo to provide services to Estacada’s estimated 3,000 city residents, but there’s no question that most of the city’s departments have taken a hit in funding, City Council Member Norm Ernst said.

Despite the 12 percent decrease in funding for 2009-10, there is a bright spot in the city’s budget thanks to Clackamas County voters. In November 2008, Clackamas County voters approved Measure 3-310 in support of a property tax of approximately 39 cents per $1,000 of assessed value to provide funding for the county’s libraries. The city will receive an estimated $595,000 from property taxes for funding the library, and the increased funding will allow the library to be open seven days a week with extended hours each day, according to city records.

In the city budget’s general fund, the City Council approved continuing the partnership with the Sandy Area Metro transportation service for $5,000 that provides free public transportation from Estacada to Sandy; the fareless route continues west from Sandy into Gresham. Council members also approved a partnership with the Estacada School District and Clackamas County Sheriff’s Office to pay $35,000, or one-third of the total cost, for a school resource officer to be located at Estacada High School during the school year. The general fund also includes a plan to use an estimated $600,000 in anticipated grant money to develop phase two of Wade Creek Park, according to city records.

One of the other big-ticket expenditures approved by the council is spending an estimated $452,000 with the Clackamas County Sheriff’s Office for public safety coverage. But an estimated 20 percent rate increase forced the city to cut back on coverage hours and begin looking closely at the feasibility of forming a city-managed police department.

“The city continues to invest in contracting for our public safety with the Clackamas County Sheriff’s Department,” City Budget Officer Denise Carey said. “[But] we are proposing a reduction to the city weekly contract coverage from 104 to 80 hours of coverage for an annual cost of $451,856.”

While the city initially considered replacing contract services from the CCSO with a city-managed police department, a committee wasn’t organized in time to pursue a feasibility study and look at all of the options and factors to consider for the potential change. But it’s not out of the question that Estacada may have its own police department one day.

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